Frank Alpine is "The Assistant."
The story is about how Frank changes from a wannabe gangster to a good human being.
The change takes time and is not smooth. Frank takes "two steps forward and
one step back," but he finally reaches a worthy goal.

Frank does
not achieve his goal by himself. He has help from Morris Bober, who is like a
father to him. He also is guided by stories that he heard as a child, an orphan,
about the life of Saint Francis.

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Frank is not Jewish, a fact that causes Ida Bober to worry about the possibility
that he might develop a relationship with her daughter, Helen.

Morris
Bober

Morris Bober is the proprietor of a small grocery store in
Brooklyn. He was born in Russia and immigrated to America. He is a Jew. Although
he does not follow all the rules, he does follow the most important part. He follows
the Law.

Morris is a good, honest man who has difficulty understanding
that everyone is not as honest as he is.

Morris lost his son years ago.
He now develops a father-son relationship with Frank Alpine. It is through his
talks with Frank that Frank changes.

Helen Bober

Helen
Bober is the twenty-three year old daughter of Morris and Ida Bober. She lives
with them. She is not married. She works at Levenspiel's Louisville Panties &
Bras. She gives her pay to her father, who gives a little of it back to her. She
reads books, but yearns for a "real" education. Slowly, she becomes
interested in Frank. At first, she likes the Frank that she imagines him becoming,
not the person that he actually is at that time.